The Units of Weight in Bible and Quran


by Prof.dr. Ibrahim Khalil - Date: 2007-03-22 - Word Count: 1232 Share This!

The Units of Weight stated in the Bible are Gerah, Beka, Shekel, Mina and the Talent.

While the Units of Weight cited in the Quran are the Atomic Weight and the Subatomic Weight in addition to the weights that are more than that.

However, the intellectual scholars claim that the Quran is quoted or misquoted from the Bible.

The Units of Weight used in the Bible are Gerah, Beka, Shekel, Mina and Talent; they are mentioned five times, five times, 92 times, 11 times and 46 times respectively with a total frequency of 159 times.

The total frequency of the Units of Weight in the Quran is eight times, i.e., the Bible cites the Units of Weight 20 times more than the Quran does.

Furthermore, the total words in the Bible are 788,280 while the total words in the Quran are 77,473. It follows that, the Bible has the likely of more than 10 times than the Quran word-wise to talk about The Units of Weight. In addition, the Bible has the prospective of more than 20 times than the Quran topic-wise to utter about the Units of Weight.



The Units of Weight in the Bible:

Gerah, Beka and Shekel:

Exodus 30:13

"Each one who crosses over to those already counted is to give a half shekel, according to the sanctuary shekel, which weighs twenty Gerahs. This half shekel is an offering to the LORD."

Exodus 30:13

"Each one who crosses over to those already counted is to give a half shekel, according to the sanctuary shekel, which weighs twenty Gerahs. This half shekel is an offering to the LORD."

Genesis 24:22

"When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring weighing a Beka and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels."

Genesis 24:22

"When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring weighing a Beka and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels."

Genesis 24:22

"When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring weighing a Beka and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels."

Genesis 23:16

"Abraham agreed to Ephron's terms and weighed out for him the price he had named in the hearing of the Hittites: four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weight current among the merchants."

2 Samuel 14:26

"..Two hundred shekels by the royal standard."

Exodus 38:24

"..29 talents and 730 shekels, according to the sanctuary shekel."

The Mina and the "Sixty":

Ezekiel 45:12

"The shekel is to consist of twenty Gerahs. Twenty shekels plus twenty-five shekels plus fifteen shekels equal one mina."

Herein, one mina=20+25+15 shekels. I wonder why the Bible uses this mathematical equation to tell that one mina = 60 shekels, why the Bible did not use "sixty" instead of "20+25+15". "Sixty" is mentioned 35 times in the Bible!

The Talent:

Exodus 25:39

"A talent of pure gold is to be used for the lamp stand and all these accessories."

Exodus 38:25

"...100 talents and 1,775 shekels, according to the sanctuary shekel".

The definition of The Units of Weight in the Bible:

- Gerah means a grain or kernel, and hence a small weight. It is the twentieth part of a shekel.

- Bekah (Beka) means "a half" i.e., "half a shekel,"

-Shekel, means "a weight," it is only in the Old Testament, One Shekel = twenty Gerahs. Also, there are three types of Shekels, those used by Merchant, the sanctuary shekel and Shekel weighed by the royal standard.

- A Ma'neh, (Mina) means "a part" or "portion" it is equal to 60 shekels.

- A Talent of silver is equal to 3,000 shekels, i.e., 125 lbs.

- A Talent of gold is equal to 6,000 shekels, i.e., 250 lbs.

In conclusion:

The Gerah is the twentieth part of a shekel (= O.571 gram)

One Beka = 10 Gerah or a half of a shekel or 5.812 grams

One Shekel = 20 Gerah

0ne mina= 60 shekels

One talent = 3000 shekels

One talent of gold = 30 mina

One talent of silver = 50 mina

From the above, the least unit of weight in the Bible is about 0.75 gram.

The Units of Weight in the Quran are:

- The weight of a mustard seed

- The weight of an atom

- The Subatomic weight

The weight of a mustard seed:

Surah 21:47

"We shall set up scales of justice for the Day of Judgment, so that not a soul will be dealt with unjustly in the least. And if there be (no more than) the weight of a mustard seed, We will bring it (to account): and enough are We to take account."

Surah 31:16

"O my son!" (Said Luqman), "If there be (but) the weight of a mustard-seed and it were (hidden) in a rock, or (any where) in the heavens or on earth, Allah will bring it forth: for Allah understands the finest mysteries, (and) is well-acquainted (with them)."

In these two verses, Allah understands everything, knows everything and His Global knowledge are well-acquainted with the finest and hidden things.

In verse 31:6, "Luqman", the famous wise man is not found in the Bible.



The weight of an atom (the Atomic weight):

The other gods which man believes in are powerless.

Surah 34:22

"Say: "Call upon other (gods) whom ye fancy, besides Allah: they have no power, - not the weight of an atom - in the heavens or on earth; no (sort of) share have they therein, nor is any of them a helper to Allah."

The unbelievers deny the Day of Judgment and the Afterlife.

Surah 34:3

"And those who disbelieve say: the hour shall not come upon us. Say: yea! By my lord, the knower of the unseen, it shall certainly come upon you; not the weight of an atom becomes absent from him, in the heavens or in the earth, and neither less than that nor greater, but (all) is in a clear book."

At the Day of Judgment, Allah is never unjust even to the weight of an atom. Also, Allah the Most Kind doubles the reward of the good deeds.

Surah 4:40

"surely Allah is never unjust to the weight of an atom, and if it is a good deed he multiplies it and gives from himself a great reward in the least degree: if there is any good (done) He doubleth it, and giveth from His own presence a great reward."

The Ultimate fate of man; People are divided into two groups; good and evil, each of which will receive the fruit of their own actions.

Surah 99:7 and 8

[7] Then shall anyone who has done an atom's weight of good, see it!"

[8] And anyone who has done an atom's weight of evil, shall see it."

The Subatomic weight:

Surah 10:61

"and you are not (engaged) in any affair, nor do you recite concerning it any portion of the Quran, nor do you do any work but we are witnesses over you when you enter into it, and there does not lie concealed from your lord the weight of an atom in the earth or in the heaven, nor any thing less than that nor greater, but it is recorded in a clear book."

In this verse, nothing is concealed or hidden from Allah who knows everything wherever it is or whenever it is even if it is less than an atom weight wise and or more than that.

Back to our main issue; this is my question to you smart readers: Is the Quran quoted from the Bible? And which book preceded the sciences? The book which uses the atomic weight and the subatomic weight as the units of weight or the book which uses the Gerah, the Beka, the Shekel, the Mina and the Talent as the units of weight.


Related Tags: bible, allah, quran, day of judgment, atomic weight, shekel

Professor Dr. Ibrahim Khalil
Prof. of Clinical and Chemical Pathology,
Head of Clinical Microbiology and Infection Control Unit,
Ain-Shams University. Cairo, Egypt.
And, President of The Egyptian Society of Inventors.
Member of the Egyptian union of Writers

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